TMSDL 20

Chapter 20

Roanoke was a world ruled by strength.

Siege wars, battles—those who led on the frontlines.

It was a world where the power and authority of warriors were revered by the majority of users.

― Monsters in Roanoke are extremely strong.
― To repel the demon race’s invasion, the power of warriors is essential.
― Mages themselves are strategic weapons. Regions with many mages are safer.

In Roanoke, with constant monster waves and sieges, the strong were respected even more.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

From the moment Weed started hammering metal, the reactions of the blacksmith NPCs were unusual.

“How is this sound even possible…?”

“It’s clean. Clear.”

“I didn’t know metal could produce such a pure sound.”

Blacksmiths, who had spent their lives pounding metal, immediately sensed something extraordinary.

They all stopped what they were doing and turned to stare at Weed.

Even the users who came to buy items, and player blacksmiths, became curious.

“What’s up with them? Why are they reacting like that?”

“Does it really sound that different?”

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Weed hammered boldly and confidently, a rhythm to every strike.

He pounded the uneven metal flat, cooled it in water for quenching.

The temperature of the fire and water was perfectly adjusted with the help of experience and AI assistance.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

With each strike and fold, the metal became stronger.

Metal gains hardness through the process of being struck with a craftsman’s hammer, then tempered in fire and water.

“So that’s the difference when it’s handmade instead of using auto mode.”

“Where’s this master from? Just his hammering posture shows insane skill.”

Spectators could only marvel.

“Whoa. He’s doing manual crafting, but it looks so natural.”

“There probably isn’t much difference in the finished product though, right?”

Even the blacksmith users were intrigued.

They watched with a mixture of amazement and envy.

Sssss!

Weed cooled the heated metal again and began shaping it.

Though it was just a common longsword, its length, thickness, and proportions were perfect. A beautiful and complete weapon.

The sharpened blade gleamed, even from a distance, one could feel its sharpness.

The first sword was completed.

Ding!

― [Newly Forged Iron Sword]
Material: Iron
Attack Power: 21~29
Durability: 30/30
Weight: 15
A sword crafted by a master who understands metal.
It is light, sturdy, and sharp.
A textbook example of what a sword should be.
Options:
– Weight Reduction
– +12% Penetration against Leather Armor
– +5 Attack Power
– +3 Strength
– +10% Skill Damage
You have learned the [Blacksmithing] skill.
Blacksmithing Beginner Level 1 (25%):
You can process metals to create weapons and armor.
Your Dexterity skill level has increased.
Additional effects apply to crafting and combat skills.
You have achieved a Craftsman’s Feat!
You created a high-quality sword without previously learning the Blacksmithing skill.
All stats increased by 2.
Gained 3 Hero Points.

Weed swung the iron sword he had just made.

The balance was good, and it sliced through the air smoothly, but it didn’t quite satisfy him.

“A defective product.”

If it had been his first sword ever, he might have been pleased.

But he had made and wielded countless legendary blades in Royal Road.

He had once rivaled the Dwarven master blacksmiths.

Compared to them, this was still lacking.

“My skills have really rusted over time.”

He hadn’t planned to rely on blacksmithing skills from the start.

But his control was slightly off, and he hadn’t been able to fully purify the impurities between fire and water.

‘Some margin of error is allowed, but I need to be intimately familiar with the entire process—folding, hammering, shaping the sword.’

A real blacksmith should feel unity with the metal when hammering it.

Hammering isn’t just work—it’s the process of becoming part of the sword itself.

Artists possess delicate sensitivity to express emotion, but craftsmen possess tireless effort and the joy of creation.

They can forge dozens of swords a day without boredom, always striving for higher skill.

Craftsmanship isn’t born from talent alone.

It’s the product of sweat and time.

‘An artist can get praise just by bluffing, but a craftsman can’t.’

Just as Weed was about to start hammering again…

A user who had been watching from afar approached and asked:

“Are you selling that sword you just made?”

At those words, Weed smelled money.

He was heading back to the Hell difficulty quest, and the sword would just become extra baggage. But if he could sell it…

Weed replied, feigning disinterest like a true craftsman:

“I made it, so I suppose I could sell it.”

“May I take a look?”

“If you’d like.”

The user picked up the iron sword.

“Appraise!”

After using the appraisal skill and checking the stats, he gasped.

“Whoa… the attack power is slightly above average, but it has five options attached!”

Everyone in the smithy was shocked.

Ordinary swords rarely have options, maybe one or two.

Even skilled blacksmiths rarely manage four options, but five? That was unheard of.

“Seriously? Let me see.”

“No way. He’s right!”

“Five options… and it even has armor penetration—that’s rare!”

Weapons are valued not just by attack power, but by their attached options.

With five options, this sword ranked at least one or two tiers higher than average.

“I’ll buy it!”

“I’ll buy it too!”

“I want to reserve the next sword!”

A line formed instantly from people wanting to buy weapons.

Weed thought to himself:

‘They say no job is lowly… but blacksmith is clearly far superior to sculptor.’

(It seems Master harbors deep resentment against artistic professions.)

‘I’m just stating facts.’

Weed had made the comment offhandedly, but the AI took it seriously and ran a simulation.

(Simulating the outcome had Master chosen Blacksmith in Royal Road…)
(Considering your skills, personality, and obsession with money, you would have mastered the Blacksmith skill the fastest.)
(You likely would have crafted many legendary and mythical-grade items and swept through high-reward blacksmith quests.)
(You would have achieved far greater success than you did as a Sculptor.)

Weed often belittled Sculptor as a habit—because it was mostly true.

People often say blacksmithing is tedious and exhausting.

Like priesthood, it’s a rare and respected class, but…

“How is this even possible?”

“This is just unreal.”

The users inside the smithy were witnessing a miracle.

They didn’t think much of Weed’s first few swords.

‘Guess he’s pretty skilled.’
‘Maybe the extra options are just a perk of manual crafting. Still, too tedious for me to try it.’
‘We could just divide the market among blacksmiths. Why go out of your way to stand out?’

But as they watched, the swords Weed created kept getting better—both in attack power and options.

‘Did that one just break 30 attack power?’
‘Have I ever made a weapon that good before?’
‘…Should I try manual crafting now?’

Then something changed.

The sound of Weed’s hammer became different.

It was crisper. Deeper.

“Huh?”

“What is that?”

Even while working on their own items, blacksmith users kept watching Weed.

And then they saw it.

Light radiating from the unfinished sword Weed was hammering.

“The Radiant Light?”

“Are you serious?!”

In Roanoke, gear had quality tiers.

The Radiant Light only appeared when a blacksmith was crafting a masterpiece-level item beyond even rare grade.

Creating a single masterpiece significantly increased the blacksmith’s fame and skill levels.

All the blacksmith users had the same thought:

‘Fail.’
‘Break. Shatter!’
‘Explode!’
‘It’s okay if it just cracks. Making a masterpiece in one go is impossible!’

The Radiant Light glowed brighter.

Many had failed at this very moment due to excitement or carelessness.

The other users quickly glanced at Weed’s face.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

But Weed just kept hammering, cooling the metal, then hammering again.

His expression didn’t change.

He wasn’t excited. He was completely immersed in his work.

And he showed no sign of satisfaction with what he was making.

‘He’s insane.’
‘This is hopeless.’
‘At this rate, he’s really going to finish a masterpiece. No!’

Weed was completely focused on the sword.

Even if he just finished it normally, it would still qualify as a masterpiece.

“What’s he doing now?”

“Is he trying to ruin it?”

Weed was now heating the metal with charcoal and coal.

Everyone wondered why.

One user named Goruk, a fellow blacksmith, knew the answer.

“Wait… is he trying to infuse the metal with carbon?”

“Carbon?”

Goruk nodded.

“When we heat metal and hammer it, we’re essentially heat-treating it—changing its internal structure. Impurities get burned off.”

“Yeah, right.”

“That’s basic knowledge, of course.”

Some blacksmith users only did it because it was just the routine—they didn’t really understand why.

“By heating the metal, then quickly cooling it, the structure becomes denser. Reheating removes instability.”

“Hmm.”

“Through multiple temperature cycles, we harden and temper the metal. Folding it is another method. You can also use chemical means to harden the surface.”

“Huh?”

Using charcoal and coal to diffuse carbon onto the surface—carburizing.

“It creates a dual-structure blade: tough and flexible core, but extremely hard surface. That’s how you get a very powerful weapon.”

The blacksmith users nodded.

“Oh, I see.”

“Totally makes sense.”

“Yeah… I already knew that.”

Even if they didn’t fully understand it—like liberal arts students trying to chat with science majors—they realized one thing: